Button injector and positioning attachment



July 21, 1953 R. E. FOWLER BUTTON INJECTOR AND POSITIONING ATTACHMENT Filed Jan. 17, 1951 I 3 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTOR. 72 0 5 i o'wi'er,

ATTD RN EYS R. E. FOWLER BUTTON INJECTOR AND POSITIONING ATTACHMENT Filed Jan. 1'7, 1951 July 21, 1953 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR.

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' R. E. FOWLER BUTTON INJECTOR AND POSITIONING ATTACHMENT Filed Jan. 17, 1951 July 21, 1953 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 IN VEN TOR. fi yjlf FZwZer,

' ATTORNEYS Patented July 21, 1953 UNITED STATES BUTTON INJECTOR Ann POSITIONING ATTACHMENT Roy E. Fowler, Watkinsville, Ga... assignor of onehalf to Luther Henson, Athens, Ga.

Application January 17, 1951,.Serial No. 206,467

2 Claims. 1 This invention relates to attachments for sewing machines and particularly machinesfor sewing buttons on shirts, trousers. coats and the like, and in particular this invention relates to mechanical instrumentalities for receiving but tons from a chute, turning the button so that openings therein are in registering relation with a needle of a sewing machine and feeding the buttons to a position for receiving the needle oi the machine. 1

The purpose of this invention is to provide mechanical means of feeding and positioning buttons on button sewing machines whereby the necessity of positioning the buttons by hand is eliminated. Various devices have been provided for feeding buttons and similar objects to sewing and other machines but in the garment making in dustry considerable time is lost and fingers are damaged because it is necessary to hold a button in position for sewing by hand. With this thought in mind this invention contemplates an attachment having a slide positioned to receive buttons from a chute with means for rotating the buttons to correct positions as they are fed to designated positions on material where they receive the needle of the machine.

The object of this invention is, therefore, to provide a button injectingand positioning attachment for sewing machines in which buttons are positively held and definitely positioned to be attached by stitching to the material of a garment or the like.

'Another object of the invention is to provide a button feeding and positioning attachment that may be installed on sewing machines now in use.

A further object of the invention is to provide a button feeding and positioning attachment which turns buttons to correct positions for being attached by stitching to garments which is of a comparatively simple and economical con-- struction.

With these and other objects and advantages in View the invention embodies a slide having a button receiving recess therein with means for rotating a button as the slide is moved forwardly and pins for entering the openings in a button when the button is in 'a desired position as the button is carried to an attaching position.

Other features and advantages of the invention will appear from the following description taken in connection with the drawings where- Figure 1 is a side elevational view illustrating the position of the attachment on a sewing machine with the needle of the sewing machine shown above a button holding foot of the attachment and with other parts of the sewing machine omitted.

Figure -2 is a plan view of the attachment shown in Fig. 1 showing a button chute extended from one side through which buttons, are fed to the slide of the attachment.

Figure 3 is a. longitudinal section through the attachment showing the partspositioned to receive a button. 1

Figure 4 is a similar view illustrating the parts in a positionwhere the button is fed from the slide to a positioning foot by which the button is carried to an attaching position on a garment or the like. 7

Figure 5 is a cross. section through the attachment takenon'line 55 of Fig. 4.

Figure 6. is a cross section taken on line 66 of Fig. 4 showing the mounting plate of the attachment.

Figure 7 is a plan view showing the button gripping jaws of the button holding foot that carries the button to the attachingposition of the attachment said section being taken on line 1'l of Fig. 4 and shown with the arms of the jaws and slide broken away.

Figure 8 is a cross section taken on line 8-8 of Fig. 7, illustrating a button being deposited between the gripping jaws of the positioning foot.

Figure 9 is a cross section taken on line 99 of Fig. 3 illustrating the mounting plate or bar with a bracket on one side for attaching the device to a bed of ,a sewing machine.

Figure 10 is a cross section through the slide and mounting bar taken on line ill-4 0 of Fig. 3.

Figure 11 is a longitudinal section through the intermediate part of the attachment illustratin a'tilting cam for withdrawing pins from openings of a button.

Figure 12 is a similar section showing the cam actuated to the pinii ithdrawing position.

Figure l2- A is the cross section taken on line l2-A--l2-A of Fig. 1'1 illustrating the cam mounting.

Referring now to the drawings wherein like reference characters denote corresponding parts the improved button feeding and'positioning attachment of this invention includes a slide l0, channel shaped in cross section, a mounting bar H, a shaft ii, an elevating lever l3, a cam M for withdrawing pins E5 on a spring arm I 6 and.

3 ing jaws l8 and I9 carried by a bracket 20 which is resiliently held downwardly by a spring 2|.

The slide 10 is provided with a web having flanges with ribs 22 and 23 and the ribs are positioned to travel in grooves 24 and 25, respectively of the mounting bar H and the slide is provided with an upper bar 26 that is adjustably attached to the upper surface by bolts 21 and 28 and that is provided with a tongue 29, which is secured to the bar 26 by screws 30 and 3| and that extends from the forward end thereof.

The tongue 29 is positioned to extend over a button, as indicated by the dotted lines 32, in Fig. 2 whereby as a button is received from a chute 33 it is retained in a socket or space 34 provided at the end of the upper bar and between the tongue 29 and upper surface of the slide and in this area the button is positioned over openings 35 and through which the pins 15 on the spring arm l6 extend. The spring arm [6 is attached to the under surface of the upper section of the slide H) by a screw 36 and with the parts as shown in Figs. 3 and 12 the forward end of the spring arm [6 is held downwardly by the cam ['4 whereby the pins 15 extend downwardly from the opening 35, as shown in Fig. 3.

As the slide moves forwardly the sides of a button held in the socket 34 engage a roughened rubber strip 31 at one side and a bar 38 at the other whereby with one side of the button traveling against the smooth surface of the bar 38 and the opposite side frictionally engaging the roughened surface of the rubber strip 37 the button is rotated and as the pins l are bearing against the under surface of the button, the spring arm [6 having been released by the cam M, the beveled upper end of the pins [5 enter the openings of the button when the openings are in registering position with the pins.

The rubber strip 31 is held by a bar 39 with a tongue of the strip positioned in the slot 46 and the bar 39 is secured to the mounting bar H by a bolt 4|. The bar 36 is also secured by bolts 42 to the mounting bar. The mounting bar H, as shown in Fig. 9 is also provided with a flange 43 by which the attachment may be mounted in the side of the bed of a sewing machine by a bolt 44, with the bolt extended through hubs 45.

The slide I9 is actuated automatically or by manual means and, as illustrated in Figs. 3 and 4 pressure on the outer end of the shaft I2 moves the shaft inwardly until a set collar 46, thereon engages the end of the slide l0 and thereby moves the slide forwardly. In this movement fingers 4! and 48, between which a pin 49 is positioned actuate the cam 14 through the arms 50 and 5| at the ends thereof and in which the pin 49 is carried whereby the spring arm I6 is released so that the pin [5 may pass upwardly in the openings 35. The fingers 41 and 48 are carried by an arm 52 extended from the end of the shaft [2.

The outer end of the shaft I2 is threaded and an arm 53 is adjustably mounted thereon being held in position by adjusting nuts 54 and 55 and, as illustrated in Fig. 3 the rod 56, on which a spring51 is mounted is carried by the end of the arm 53 with the opposite end extended through an opening 58 in a support 59 which holds one end of the mounting bar. The rod 56 is provided with set collars 60 and 6|, the collar 60 engaging the end of the spring 51 and the collar 6| limiting rearward movement of the rod. The shaft [2 is also provided with a set collar 62 that en- 4 gages the innerend of a section 63 of the slide I6, also as shown in Fig. 3. After the slide is moved forwardly to deposit a button in the jaws l8 and [9 of the foot I! the spring 51 returns the slide to the position shown in Fig. 3.

In the forward or feeding movement of the slide a pin 64 engages projections 65 of the lever [3 which is pivotally mounted on a pin 66 in a bracket 61 carried by the end of the support 59 and as the lower end of the lever l3 moves forwardly the upper end travels upwardly forcing the bracket 20 upwardly whereby the foot I! is moved to the position shown in Fig. 4. The bracket 20 is L-shaped in elevation and a vertically disposed arm 68 thereof is retained in a socket 69 of a block 16 on the bed H of the machine and the outer end of the bracket is attached to a section 12 and a foot I! by bolts 13 and T4. The section 12 is connected to the foot I! by a downwardly sloping section 15. The spring 21 is mounted on a section 16 of the bed of the machine by a bolt 11.

As illustrated in Fig. 2 the bars 38 and 39 are provided with slotted openings 18 and 19, respectively, so that the positions of the button engaging surfaces may be adjusted to compensate for buttons of different sizes and with the parts arranged in this manner the buttons 32, fed from the chute 33, are received in the socket 34 and by pressing forwardly upon the end of the shaft l2 the slide is moved forwardly whereby the buttons are carried through the blocks 38 and 39 which rotate the buttons until openings in the buttons are in registering relation with the pin [5 carried by the spring arm [6. The slide delivers the buttons to the jaws l8 and [9 of the foot l1 wherein the buttons are gripped by arcuate edges 8| and 82 of the gripping jaws l8 and 19, respectively. With return movement of the slide the foot I! drops downwardly to the position shown in Fig. 3 where it is upon the material of a shirt or other garment and the needle 83 may be actuated to stitch the button to the garment.

It will be understood that modifications may be made in the design and arrangement of the parts without departing from the spirit of the invention.

What is claimed is:

1. In a button injector and positioner attachment, the combination which comprises an elongated mounting bar having continuous grooves providing tracks in the edges, a slide, channelshape in cross section having a web with flanges at the sides positioned in the mounting bar and having ribs on the flanges which are positioned to slide in the tracks of the mounting bar, an upper bar carried by the slide, said slide having an open button receiving area positioned beyond the end of said upper bar, the web of said slide having openings therein and said openings positioned in the button receiving area at the end of the upper bar, a spring arm having spaced pins on one end, means mounting the spring arm on the slide whereby the pins are positioned to register with said openings in the web of the slide, means for actuating the spring arm whereby said pins are withdrawn from the openings of the web of the slide, a rubber strip having a rough face mounted in the mounting bar and positioned to be engaged by a button in said button receiving area of the slide for rotating the button in said area as the button is moved forwardly by the slide, means for manually actuating the slide, resilient means urging the slide away from the button feeding position, a bracket extended over the attachment and adapted to be pivotally mounted on the machine, a foot extended downwardly from the extended end of the bracket and adapted to position a button on a piece of material on the machine, means actuating said bracket for positioning the foot at the discharge end of the slide for receiving a button from the said upper bar thereof, and a button feeding chute extended from one side of the mounting bar.

2. In a button injector and positioner attachment, the combination which comprises an elongated mounting bar having continuous grooves providing tracks in the edges, a slide, channel-shape in cross section having a web with flanges at the sides positioned in the mounting bar and having ribs 0n the flanges which are positioned to slide in the tracks of the mounting bar, an upper bar carried by the slide, said slide having an open button receiving area positioned beyond the end of said upper bar, the web of said slide having openings therein and said openings positioned in the button receiving area at the end of the upper bar, a spring arm having spaced pins on one end, means mounting the spring arm on the slide whereby thepins are positioned to register with said openings in the web of the slide, meansfor actuating the spring arm whereby said pins are withdrawn from the openings of the web of the slide, a rubber strip having a rough'face mounted in the mounting bar and positioned to be engaged by a button in said button receiving area of the slide for rotating the button in said areaas the button is moved forwardly by the slide, means for manually actuating the slide, resilient means urging the slide away from the button feeding position, a bracket adapted to be pivotally mounted on a machine on which the attachment is positioned and located to extend over the attachment, a foot having gripping jaws therein carried by the bracket, an elevating lever pivotally mounted on the attachment and positioned to elevate the bracket upon travel of the slide to move a button to a position for depositing the button in a foot of the bracket with the foot elevated with the bracket to a button receivingposition at the end of the mounting bar and slide, and means whereby the elevating lever is actuatedto drop the bracket and position the foot on a piece of material for stitching the button to material.

ROY E. FOWLER.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,524,139 Klagges Jan. 27, 1925 2,487,352 McDaniel Nov. 8, 1949 2,505,468 Forca Apr. 25, 1950 

